“There’s nothing like liberation. Life can have you bound and chained to your past. It can have you bound and chained to rules. It can have you bound and chained to the matrix, but when you’re liberated, you’re like a phoenix rising from the ashes. I think I’m at one of the happiest places in my life that I’ve ever been by just being.” – Ts Madison, episode 232 of Talk Easy with Sam Fragoso
This week we revisit our episode with performer Ts Madison! She’s excellent in the new film, ZOLA, now out in theaters across the country. Get your tickets here.
A trailblazer in the LGBTQ+ community, Ts shares the stories that made her Ts: flipping through a Playgirl magazine at age three (3:30), exploring her nascent sexuality under a Christian roof (13:28) and the consequences of her curiosity (17:02). She also talks turning pain into comedy (30:36), her time as a sex worker (29:01), and the “duty” of “keeping the door open” to encourage representation for the Trans community (42:44). Then, before we go, she looks back on the night she first felt seen and the liberation that followed (45:40).
Show notes
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- Follow @zolamovie on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.
- Watch the film’s official trailer.
- Follow Ts on Instagram and Twitter.
- Watch The TS Madison Experience on WE tv.
- Listen to her guest appearance on The Laverne Cox Show.
- Get your copy of A Light Through the Shade.
- Illustrations by: Krishna Shenoi.